Search here...
TOP
Arts & Crafts Cleaning DIY

Homemade Miracle Cleaner

Update: Wow! thank you so much for all the love. we are happy to hear that this has had AMAZING results. many of you have tried it and now swear by it. we are so happy to hear that! again, thank you for spreading the word. this is now one of our most popular craft posts. to see other arts & crafts, diy’s and how-tos, click here and view our arts & crafts category!

Read the comments for feedback on those who have tried it!

I’m not big on cleaning. Don’t get me wrong, I love having clean things…but I generally get fed up with the amount of time, elbow grease, and/or money for cleaning products required to do the job. However, when I do take the time to clean something, I am overcome with pride and the feeling that I can conquer anything. But that feeling soon fades when something else becomes soiled and I am faced, yet again, with the grueling task of scrubbing till my knuckles bleed.

I always felt that if I could simply find a cleaning product that was inexpensive, actually worked, and didn’t require much on my part… I might actually clean more often. Well, on one of my Pinterest searches one day, I found what looked to be a very promising homemade cleaning concoction.

Maybe you’ve seen it. The mixture of Dawn dish washing liquid and hydrogen peroxide that claims to be one of the only spot removers you will ever need! But if you’re like me, repinning the idea was about as far as you got and you have no clue if the stuff actually works or not. If that is the case – wonder no longer! I decided to actually try some of the things I had pinned on my boards and this spot remover was one of the first things on my list!

After doing a load of laundry the other day, I noticed that there was a cloth wipe that had some not-so-pretty spots on it.

I won’t go into detail about what the spots were from… I’ll just tell you that I’m a cloth diapering mama and leave the rest to your imagination. :)

While I’m sure the wipe was perfectly clean and sanitary, I shudder at the thought of having something that looked so yucky! Naturally, I deemed this a perfect time to try out my new recipe.

Ingredients for Miracle Cleaner:

1 part Dawn Dishwashing Liquid (the original blue kind)
2 parts Hydrogen Peroxide
Mix together and pour directly on the stain.

If it is a big stain, you can always add the mixture to a bucket of hot water and submerse your stained item in it. I actually chose to mix mine in a spray bottle and just squirt it onto my wipe. I probably didn’t have to put as much as I did, but I didn’t want to go through the whole process just to find out I needed more…so I opted to douse the thing and let the mixture do its job.

I’m not going to lie – I am a very impatient person and after about a minute or two of waiting, I decided to give the wipe a little rub to agitate the mixture and then rinse it out. And since I am a big fan of “before and after” photos…

I was so excited! Ecstatic! Over the moon with happiness! So much so, that I ran to the living room to get my daughter’s Princess chair. She’s had it for over a year now and you can definitely tell that it is well loved. From food stains, to milk stains, to “what-in-the-world-could-that-possibly-be?!” stains…this chair has definitely seen better days.

I doused the entire chair with my miracle cleaner and then let it sit. Because this seemed like it would be a harder job, I left it alone for a bit longer (albeit, just a little bit longer…). After waiting for what seemed like an eternity (but was probably less than 10 minutes), I took a rag and started rubbing little circles on the soiled areas. I have no clue if this is “proper” or not, but when I was finished I didn’t try to rinse it off in any way. I just wiped off the excess foam from my light scrubbing, then sat back and admired the fruits of my labor.

It’s not 100% perfect, but by golly – it’s pretty close! I’m thinking that another cleaning or two will have this chair looking like new! I should probably mention that this is not the first time I have attempted cleaning this chair. I tried a couple other things that seemed simple enough, but just didn’t deliver. If anything, they made things worse. I was planning on trying out a recipe I found that called for whipping Dawn dishwashing liquid in my Kitchenaid mixture until it took on the consistency of whipped cream…but that was just waaaay more work than I really cared to do.

I can honestly say, however, that this new little combination has me thinking of other things I can use it on. Those spots of fruit punch that have been on the carpet for the last year and a half…they’re next. Along with the white shirt that me and my clumsy self splattered buffalo wing sauce all over. I’m even thinking of attacking the dingy looking grout in our bathroom to see if maybe, just maybe, it will work on that as well. I hate to say it but…I think I’m starting to like cleaning!!

Here are some other places that this miracle cleaner works:

It has been tried and tested by our readers..

– Grout

Samantha says:
We are in the process of moving and just recently tackled the “grout situation” as I like to call it… My husband tried cleaning it with some mean green (which seems like scented water to me – hardly worked on ANYTHING around the house that needed cleaning). He was on the bathroom floor scrubbing like crazy and there didn’t seem to be much of a difference (also have to be careful when it comes to scrubbing too much – don’t want to take up actual grout – just the discoloration! Haha). I sprayed the tiles with some of the miracle cleaner’ and after just a few minutes (again, I’m impatient…) it worked amazingly!

The hubby was a little upset that he spent 30 minutes scrubbing and my 5 minutes had far better results than his (and with minimal effort)! In my defense, I TOLD him to use this stuff but he didn’t listen…stubborn men! :)

– Skunked Dogs

– Carpet

– Microfiber Couch

– Cloth Diapers

– Floor Grout

– Clothes

– Carpet Cleaner

– Upholstery

– Red Wine Stains

Note: Please test a spot FIRST, that is not visible to others. You don’t want to start by directly covering your fabric with it in case it lightens it. It’s important to test it first.

Samantha is a stay at home Army wife and a mother of a 2 year old girl with another due in January. She loves cooking, doing crafts, and spending countless hours scouring the web looking for new recipes and craft ideas. She currently resides in Alabama, but will soon be moving to Florida with her family after her husband’s medical retirement.

Stop by and let us know if it works great for you! We would love to hear!!!

Modern Day Moms

Modern Day Moms is an award-winning publication centered around motherhood that is real and unfiltered. Basically, we don't sugarcoat anything and aren't afraid to tell you the truth. Let's be best friends, we will make you feel more normal.

«

»

393 COMMENTS

  • Jessica
    AUTHOR

    What a great post. Who knew it was that easy? I am definitely going to be trying this!

    • Victoria

      it worked AWESOME! i wish i would have done a before and after, my son had a white cloth high chair super old haven’t washed it since we got it, because i didn’t know how i just did a wipedown with soap and water it was stained with everything speghettio stains red velvet cake ice cream(red ice cream) and who knows what else it is all gone i was shocked! i left it on maybe 2 minutes wiped it off and rinsed it off, i have told so many people about this now its amazing! i just don’t know how to get all the soap out of my carpet lol i just did it on there and its really soapy, not sure if i did it right, the stain is out but my carpet is spitting out bubbles lol

      • Modern Day Moms
        AUTHOR

        That is so great to hear! I would suggest scrubbing it a little more with a dry wash cloth and then dampen it a bit to get the rest of the soap out.

        I’m so happy to hear it worked.

        • Victoria

          im actually trying that now thank you tho! lol

        • Jeanne

          Can it be made ahead of time and saved. I left it in a jar because I hadn’t used it all and it is now clear.

          • Lezlie

            It can if you store it in a dark container. The hydrogen peroxide loses its effect when exposed to light. That’s why it always comes in a dark bottle.

        • Brittany

          Does it fade colors?

        • Kristi

          Hello,
          You said 1 part Dawn soap and 2 part Hydrogen. What does that mean? As in cups? Teaspoon?

          Thanks!

          • Modern Day Moms
            AUTHOR

            If you do 2 cups HP do 1 cup soap etc. 3 cups hp 2 cups Dawn. one part is like a one count.

            • Jen

              You mean 3 cups hp to 1 1/2 cups Dawn. Think of this ratio as using half Dawn to whatever amount HP you use.

              • Jules

                Hello Jen, you are correct. Half blue Dawn to to whatever amount of HP and remember to use the Blue Dawn.

                • Brook Raye

                  Does the dawn dish soap need to be clear? I bought the blue(bc thats the original and you didnt specify otherwise) and the mixture is really blue which is making my fabric blueish. Help!

        • Gloria

          As of today, this homemade stain remover has become my absolute favorite!! I wished I had taken before and after photos of my daughter’s favorite Jottum SeaRose dress. She wore it once and I decided to hand wash it. To my dismay the colors ran on the white. I couldn’t believe that I had spent so much money on that gorgeous dress and she would not be able to wear it again. It was ruined. I tried my hardest to remove the stain with Shout and then baking soda, but to no avail. I would not give up and searched online and am I glad I came across you miracle recipe!! It worked !! The dress id back to flawless!! Thanks so much!! My daughter and I are all smiles!!

      • Angela

        Try to rinse with vinegar water. It should break up the soap,

        • Cynthia

          It truly is magic. Personally, I put the white vinegar into the solution at the same rate as the Dawn. For my beloved 25 year old salmon pink carpet I use a gallon of extremely hot water, 1 tablespoon of Dawn, 1 tablespoon of vinegar, and 1/4 cup of hydrogen peroxide. It is crazy good; and then I go over the entire thing again with plain hot water just to avoid any residue. I am so happy!!!

      • Suzanne

        Try a little vinegar mixed with water to ‘rinse’ the area. I have always used vinegar in the dirty water tank of my carpet cleaning machine to eliminate the excess suds that can accumulate. The vinegar removes any soap (ie: sticky) residue, softens and eliminates odors.

      • Cindi R

        I have been using this combination for many years, but thru trial and error I found that when using the miracle Cleaning solution on carpet it has much better results if I cut way back on the Dawn. As I’m sure you all know residual soap in carpets, whether from a steam cleaner, professional cleaning service, or this solution, soap film will only attract more dirt quite quickly. In a 2 quart container start with 2 cups (16oz) tap water, 1cup (8oz) White Vinegar, 1/2cup (4oz)Hydrogen Peroxide, and finally only 1/4cup (2oz) Dawn. It is very important to follow the order of ingredients to help lessen soap foam. Yes I do realize this only makes 30oz of the solution, but I dropped my full spray bottle down the stairs and well lets just say my carpet, walls, and woodwork came out very clean. I have even used this in substitute of home carpet cleaning detergents in my personal steam cleaner. If you have really stained traffic area you can spray until quite damp, cover with a damp white towel and leave over night. I often go back through that night and lift the towel reapplying more solution. Because there is almost no soap it doesn’t dry hard with a crusty film. Please still be careful to test your carpets reaction to this solution first. Usually I don’t even really rinse much just re-dampen the towel lay flat and jump on it. Good luck

    • Sharon

      do you think you can make a big patch and leave it in a bottle to always have on hand? I do not know if it would weaken? Because mine lost the blue color when I made it the night before and used it the next morning.

    • antonia

      hola me puedes decir que es el Peróxido de Hidrógeno !!

      • Guadalupe

        Hola antonia espo que aun te sirva la respuesta, el peroxido de hidrogeno lo conocemos al menos en MExico como agua oxigenada.

        Pero ve la botella y en la mayoria de 99cent store, por ejemplo aqui en Los Angeles,el dollar tree lo encuentras o en las farmacias aunque un poco mas caro.

        Espero te ayude.

    • Fran Marie

      Hydrogen peroxide is used in bleaching hair. I strongly recommend NOT using it on dogs fur.

      • maureen

        the peroxide used for bleaching hair is 20% volume, for medicinal use 10%. i don’t believe the 20% is still sold OTC

      • Bev Dixon

        I have had two of my black dogs get skunked.. The method for fast and permanent removal of that awful smell is Hydrogen peroxide, blue Dawn dishwashing liquid, and baking soda.. I do not have a measurement ratio, but usually use up one 32 oz bottle of peroxide for a 16lb dog with medium length hair. . I have never had a ‘bleached” spot on either of my little girls. Many other methods leave behind a skunk smell if they get wet…say from rain or something something else…but this method had been so good for us.. I buy the baking soda, peroxide and dawn at Sam’s in the big bag, two pack and jug. This is so thrifty since I use them for so much of my cleaning.. So what I am saying do not worry about bleaching your dogs hair.. This mixture foams and lathers up..We really scrub her.. Be careful around eyes. Best to have a good supply of running water..we wash them in a laundry tub with a faucet.. I always am careful now when letting pups out at night. :-)

        • sarona

          Yes, this works great to deskunk a dog! I had to use it last night… The ratio is: 1 qt hydrogen peroxide, 1/4 c baking soda, 1 t liquid soap. My dog is lying on her bed in my room right now as I write this. :)

        • sheri

          Yes, it works great on skunked dogs! My black chihuahua used to get sprayed all the time and this was a lifesaver.

      • Annalisa

        The type sold over the counter is usually 1% or 3% hydrogen peroxide. What is in hair “bleach” is around 20% Hydrogen peroxide, meaning it is around 8.5-20 times stronger than the bottles you buy at the store. Just avoid your dog’s eyes and you’ll be fine!

      • Cynthia

        Not the same strengths. The home use is a mere 3% as opposed to 20-40% that hairdressers use.

      • Michael Sanders

        Some pet stores sell goggles for dogs that will help protect their eyes, when you are bathing them. But, caution is still advised. It’s also best to remove their collar before bathing them, as the water and chemicals can weaken the effectiveness of the collar. But, you must also avoid getting any chemicals into the dog’s ears, nose, mouth or in or on other sensitive areas.

      • Shelly

        Just from personal experience, my son asked what to use to eliminate the smell and sweaty germs in his football helmet. I bought OTC h. peroxide for him to spray in his helmet. Well, he soon had a night blonde spot on the top of his head, we thought he had gone bald when we saw him down on the football field! I’d be careful.

    • Annette

      Can you mix this up and leave it in a spray bottle to be used as needed or does it need to be used right away?

    • Jenny

      Well, I hate to burst the bubble…
      I tried this on a white dress with brown food stains and an orange t-shirt with mildew (?) stains, and a white t-shirt with marker stains.
      Nada, Zero, Zilch…
      It didn’t work at all. Didn’t lighten the stains one bit.
      First I thought the peroxide might have been flat, but it did leave a peroxide-bleach stain on the orange t-shirt, so the peroxide was reacting all right. (I knew in advance that might happen, so that was ok.) I got the right kind of Dawn and left it on for quite a while.
      I so wanted this to work.

      • Jenny

        CORRECTION!
        Looks like I was wrong. This is good stuff. I hung up the things to dry and the mildew stains on the orange shirt just vanished. I have never found anything to remove mildew stains, not even bleach. And no, the color did not lighten. It just looked that way for some reason, when it was wet. So I guess it is colorsafe. (But always test first.) The food stain on the white shirt didn’t come out, but that’s ok. For that, there is always bleach.
        The stuff is good on grout too.
        Just thought I needed to post this, to let others know I changed my mind.

        • Modern Day Moms
          AUTHOR

          Thank you for letting us know!!!!!!!

        • melody

          Equal parts of bleach vinegar and water will remove mildew stains from clothing however it could bleach your clothes. Also use in a well ventilated area. Fumes could be toxic I think.

          • Tina

            Don’t mix bleach and vinegar…the acid reacts with the bleach the same way ammonia does to create chlorine gas. Bad bad bad idea. It IS possible to gas yourself fatally with that mix.

    • Denise

      does anyone know if this works on shoes???

      • debi

        Yes it does my daughter has a pair of canvas white tennis shoes she wore to a bonfire party they were muddy and nasty when she came home i sprayed them with the peroxide and dawn let them set over night and washed them and they look brand new. Great stuff!!

      • Deb

        I used it on white canvas shoes with red wine stains. After letting sit for about 10 minutes, I scrubbed with a brush. The stains came right out. They are as clean as the day they were purchased.

    • Francesca

      It’s absolutely amazing! I was sooo glad it worked! Things you thought were ruined are now brand new :-)

    • Polly Etymology

      What is a “cloth wipe”? You couldn’t just say cloth?

  • Rulissa

    Wow! I pinned this, too, but haven’t tried it. I just put Dawn on my grocery list!!! Let us know if it works on tile/grout…the little ones in my shower are gross-no matter what I use!

    • Guest: Samantha

      I sure will, Rulissa! I’ve heard of a few different things that are *supposed* to work…I was actually thinking of doing a compare and contrast between them all to see what works best! =)

    • Samantha

      Sorry I haven’t replied again until now! We are in the process of moving and just recently tackled the “grout situation” as I like to call it… My husband tried cleaning it with some mean green (which seems like scented water to me – hardly worked on ANYTHING around the house that needed cleaning). He was on the bathroom floor scrubbing like crazy and there didn’t seem to be much of a difference (also have to be careful when it comes to scrubbing too much – don’t want to take up actual grout – just the discoloration! Haha). I sprayed the tiles with some of the ‘miracle cleaner’ and after just a few minutes (again, I’m impatient…) it worked amazingly!

      The hubby was a little upset that he spent 30 minutes scrubbing and my 5 minutes had far better results than his (and with minimal effort)! In my defense, I TOLD him to use this stuff but he didn’t listen…stubborn men! :)

      • Shirley

        LOL :) I have to agree … MEN !!!!!! LOL :)

      • Deborad

        I have travertine floors. Is this mixture safe for natural stone floors?

        • Modern Day Moms
          AUTHOR

          You know, honestly, I haven’t heard anyone talk about it or not. I would start with looking up the ingredients and googling if it’s good or not for your floors. That might help.

    • Mandi

      Works so well on grout! I can’t believe how effortless it was and how clean my kitchen floor is. Hasn’t been this clean since we had kids!

      • Jessica
        AUTHOR

        Yes! Great to hear.

      • Tracy

        Mandi, did you use a spray bottle and spray the peroxide/dawn mix on the grout? Did you then scrub? How long did you let it work before you scrubbed? Also, how did you use it on the floor? Did you spray the floor and then wipe? Was it super soapy? Did you need to rinse? I am sorry for all the questions, but I want to do it right because I need serious help with grout/floors!! ;) Thanks.

    • Polly Etynology

      Why do people continually waste space and time saying how they haven’t tried something? You are not contributing in a meaningful way here.

  • Rubi G.

    Does it have to be the blue kind or can it be any Dawn?

    • Guest: Samantha

      From what I have read, it is supposed to be with the original blue Dawn, so that’s what I used. I’m not sure if it would work with any other kind of Dawn (or any other kind of dish soap for that matter), but if you try – let us know how it worked for ya!

      • Laura

        Just wondering about this. You say original blue but the concentrate blue is what is pictured. Which should it be?
        Thanks.

        • Modern Day Moms
          AUTHOR

          Concentrate blue will work just as well. The original dawn (and concentrated dawn) both work good.

  • Becky

    Can you please post an update if it works on the carpet? My husband is NOTORIOUS for spilling bits of Raspberry Lemondade Crystal Light on our light beige carpet. I can never get it out….even if I tacked it right away with the Little Green Machine I bought just for this purpose.

    Thanks so much for the pics!

    Becky

    • Jan

      You can also use Scrubbing Bubbles on your carpet. This cleans very good

    • Jessica
      AUTHOR

      It does and shouldn’t be an issue!

    • Emily Dinsdale

      Ammonia works really well on dark spots on a light carpet. I put it in a spray bottle because its so powerful. Spray on area, scrub a little scrubbing brush and hey presto.

    • Betty Nowell

      Just tried it on my light beige rugs. I have 2 grandsons 4 &6 and 50 year old husband along with 2 dogs. Not sure which one makes the most crud on my rugs but I just used this on them and Holey Moley they are clean and it smells great! Side effect was it also cleaned the microfibre cloth I used on the rug! Thanks much!!!!

      • Greta Farina

        Does the combo bleach the carpet?

    • Chaniqua

      i think it might be easier to buy ur hubby an adult sippy cup. lol

      • maureen

        hahaha!

    • Sandra

      it works wondefully on carpets,,, I have 2 dogs that have been having accidents for 6 years and my carpet looked horrible,, I sprayed ( saturated) the stains with the mixture, and with no scrubbing the stains were gone,,, love , love, love this formula..

    • Sharon G

      My brother-in-law spilled cranberry-raspberry punch on my cream colored carpet this past Christmas. I soaked up as much as I could with a towel and poured CLUB SODA directly on it and sopped it up with a clean white towel. It took two times and it was actually cleaner than the rest of the floor! When it dried there was no stain at all! I am definitely going to try the Dawn and peroxide on some of my other stains on the carpet. Thanks!

  • Rubi G

    I didn’t have the blue Dawn, I had a little bit of the green and the new passion fruit or something…it’s pink kind. I tried the mix with both soaps and it worked!! I also tried it on a marker stain that my son had accidentally left on the carpet and it got it all out! It was red marker too so I was worried it wouldn’t come out but it’s all gone! Best part is it didn’t discolor the carpet at all!!

    • Jessica
      AUTHOR

      YAY! GREAT TO HEAR!

    • Jennie

      Help! I just put it on my carpet, and it is REALLY bubbly and white… what do I do?

      • Modern Day Moms
        AUTHOR

        Wipe it off with a wash cloth. It’s just the soap bubbling from the peroxide :)

  • Crystal

    I am so excited to try this! do you think that this could work to get stains out of a microfiber couch?

    • Rose

      I’m curious to know if it will discolor my couch? I want to try it so bad but I’m scared it will leave a big bleached spot….. has anyone else tried it on brown/tan microfiber?

      • Crystal

        I have a microfiber couch and understand water makes more spots. Use rubbing alcohol in a spray bottle and scrub using a white or tan sponge. Let it dry (alcohol dries faster than water so it won’t stain). Then rough it up some with a scrub brush.

        • Heather

          I was told when I bought my tan microfiber couch to use bottled water to clean it because something in hard water will leave water rings. I have always just used bottled water with a wash cloth and then used a blow dryer to dry the spot and it works every time :)

        • Bever

          I use regular Windex on my microfiber couch

      • Emily

        I know it’s an old post BUT baby wipes clean microfiber very well!

        • Modern Day Moms
          AUTHOR

          Oh awesome. Thanks for letting us know! :)

        • booie

          baby wipes will work for awhile them it all comes back out in water rings in dew time. I suggest never buy Microfiber but if you do use, alcohol it works the best!!

    • Mary

      I seen a pinner that said rubbing alcohol worked on microfiber material

    • Kim

      Try it on the underside of your sofa first as a test!

  • Jamie

    I am very interested in knowing how it worked on your carpet as well! Any luck???

    • Jessica
      AUTHOR

      Yes! It works great. Let us know how it does for you!

      • Diane

        And the peroxide will not take the color out of the carpet???

        • Maggie

          I tried this on my carpet to clean a dog urine stain and it STAINED my carpet!! It left a huge white spot that I cannot get rid of. :( I rinsed the soap out and followed directions perfectly. Idk what to do now…

  • Christina

    OMG, just found this on pinterest, and so happy it worked on cloth dipes. Mine are so gross; can’t wait to try it! Thank you!

    • Jessica
      AUTHOR

      YAY! Let us know how it does for you.

    • Samantha

      Just be sure to rinse your dipes like a mad woman before putting in the wash to make sure all the dawn is out. Don’t want you to have to worry about suds/bubbles!! :)

  • Cathy

    I just found this on pinterest.com, and am wondering if you think it will work on car upholstery, because my lasagna pan slid and dripped tomato sauce all over my front seat. Thank you.

    • Jessica
      AUTHOR

      It should not be a problem. Test a little in an inconspicuous spot first to see if the fabric will react positively to it, but it shouldn’t be a problem.

  • Marsha

    Worked great on my floor grout!

    • Jessica
      AUTHOR

      Great to hear!

  • Amanda

    Is this color-safe? Like has anyone had any problems with it taking out the color on their sofa or anything? Peroxide can “bleach” so I was wondering if it would be safe to use on my chocolate brown sofa…

    • Jessica
      AUTHOR

      Hi Amanda –
      I would try it in an inconspicuous spot on the sofa to see how the fabric reacts to it. It should be fine but I would definitely try it first.

    • Gladys

      I have a chocolate brown sofa as well – did you find this worked for yours without bleaching/affecting the color?

  • Deb

    I was wondering the same thing…

    • Jessica
      AUTHOR

      I would try it in the least noticeable spot first to see how the fabric reacts. It should be fine however but won’t hurt to test first.

  • Cathey

    This works wonders! I used this on my seriously grimy, yellowed chef jackets and they are now white again. But just a heads-up to people with high efficiency washing machines – make sure you rinse all of the dawn out before putting treated clothing in the machine. The suds almost broke my washer. Thankfully I saved it and now my stains are gone!

    • Jessica
      AUTHOR

      Thanks for the tips and letting us know.

  • Diane

    I have been using Dawn with vinegar for years as carpet cleaner. It is really great as a spot treatment as well. Have used it on puppy” accidents” on light colored carpet. It works! I am going to try it with peroxide next time. I never thought about using it as a laundry treatment but I am going to give it a whirl!!

    • Dana

      My vet recommended that when we got a bout of fleas to do the peroxide and blue dawn mixture…..blue dawn will kill the flea eggs. They did recommend bathing the dogs in the blue dawn alone for flea control as well. Love this mixture on my tub surrounds; grime just melts away.

      • Samantha W.

        I have given my big boys (two 90 lb dogs) a bath with the dawn dish soap (blue) for years now. Every summer that’s all I use when the fleas and ticks start coming out. It doesn’t irritate their skin or anything and they don’t have that usually wet dog smell either. One has short hair and the other is a boxer mix with chow so he has thick stubborn fur. You just have to make sure to rinse thoroughly to make sure it’s all out of their fur so they don’t itch.

  • Peg

    I just tried this. AMAZING!! I have an old “puppy” spot on my light carpet. Nothing else has worked. This took it out in 10 minutes!! THANK YOU!!!!

    • Jessica
      AUTHOR

      WOOHOO! Thanks!

  • Jayne Hertvik

    I’ve had a spot on the upholstery of my new car (not sure what it was, I think something must have leaked from a grocery bag). I tried various stain removers, oxyclean and had pretty much given up. Well…the stain is GONE!!! I had to respray a second time, and really worked it into the upholstery, but it looks great! Thank you so much for sharing. I LOVE PINTEREST!!!

    • Jessica
      AUTHOR

      Yay!! Great to hear. Thank you for sharing :)

  • Stephanie

    So has anyone tried this on microfiber furniture yet? We have a couch that is always getting stains from the kids and would love to find something that doesn’t just make more stains!!!

    • Jessica
      AUTHOR

      Some have tried it and it worked great. Haven’t heard any negative feedback yet. Let us know what you think! Also, I would suggest trying a spot not visibly seen to try it out first.

  • Laurie

    I tried this when my niece knocked over a glass of red wine on a cream chair. It all came out and there was quite a bit of wine on the arm of the chair and the seat cushion.

    • Jessica
      AUTHOR

      Great to hear, thank you for letting us know.

  • Amanda

    So you don’t have to rinse it out? I need to do this on a bunch of mystery carpet spots… I just spray an wipe? I just bought the dawn and am gonna try it tonight. Thanks!

    • Samantha

      I tried it on some carpet spots as well and ran our carpet cleaner (without cleaning agent in it) to try and pick up any excess fluid (I tend to SOAK stuff…haha). It may not be necessary, but if you feel there is too much liquid or that you need to do a little something ‘extra’…I would suggest taking a towel and pressing down on the spot to absorb any fluid. This may be helpful anyway if you are dealing with brightly colored stains (fruit punch…) and want to make sure it comes UP and doesn’t just get spread around. But that may or may not be an issue… :)

      • anita

        whenever using a cleaner, try to rinse it well, dirt will stick to leftover cleaners like a magnet, it’ll look worse in the long run.

  • Christy Sattler

    Thanks for this post. I have used this with success on laundry items but was wondering about other problem areas, like upholstery. You have given me courage to try:) Thanks again.
    Christy

  • Missy

    Hi! Can’t wait to try this! Have you tried this on actual diapers? I know a lot of things are not safe due to burn rashes and/or buildup issues. Just wondering if I can use this on our diapers or just wipes and such. Thanks!

    • Samantha

      Missy,

      I have not tried this on actual cloth diapers (yet) but probably will soon. I have a couple that are a little stained. I do believe that this would be perfectly safe for cloth diapers. Some people use dawn to strip their diapers and others use hydrogen peroxide as a disinfectant or even as a bleaching agent. I make my own laundry detergent (equal parts borax, WASHING soda, and oxyclean – a teaspoon or two each load) and have read that once oxyclean mixes with water, it becomes hydrogen peroxide. So I honestly think this mixture would be fine on our dipes…

      HOWEVER, if you use this, do so as a spot treatment and be sure to rinse rinse rinse before sticking them in the wash. I have heard horror stories about mom’s dealing with mountains of suds that formed when they stripped their diapers with dawn and didn’t rinse it out completely before washing!

      If you try this, let us know how it turned out for you! I’m in the process of moving and can’t wait to get settled and our washer hooked back up so I can try this too! :)

  • Naomi

    Another great use for Dawn – it kills fleas. I bathe my little dog with it and the fleas die the second it touches them. My husband uses it in the fenced-in dog yard – he attaches one of the water hose bottles to the water hose, pours Dawn in it, and sprays the yard. Fleas are gone, it’s cheaper than flea spray, and it is not poison or harmful to children or pets.

    • Melissa

      Be careful with the Dawn dish soap on your pets! It’s great for fleas but don’t wash them with it too frequently!!! As wonderul of a job it does in cutting grease on dishes, it also removes all natural oils from a pet’s skin & fur, which is not good. We learned this lesson the hard way. My mother-in-law has 3 terriers inside her house and the mama dog ended up developing a skin condition due to the Dawn dish soap drying out her skin too much, on top of horomonal issues from her two litters of puppies that seemed to worsen it. However, she was giving her a Dawn soap bath once every week/two weeks to help with fleas. Her vet chastised her for it. :/ He did say that it’s okay to use it every once in a while (after all, it is used on wild birds & other animals that get coated with oil when there are oil spills) but too frequently can really cause issues like her dog has.

      • Amy

        I use Murphy’s Oil Soap to wash my dogs and kill fled instantly!! It’s all-natural and doesn’t strip their natural oils. Leaves them sooo clean too!!!

        • Amy

          *fleas!! Not fled!*

    • JanH

      Hi.

      I used to work for a pet groomer who used Dawn occasionally on really greasy dirty dogs. It did work great.

      However, Dawn must never be used on a cat. I’m not sure why but Dawn will kill a cat.

      • jennifer

        We have used Dawn on all three of our cats and they are fine. You have to make sure that you rise them very, very good. They will “wash” theirselves in order to get dry. You don’t want them to ingest it. But we had to use this to get rid of fleas last summer also, and we did the Dawn bath a few times and they are fine. We wash them normally with an oatmeal soap though. The original blue Dawn is safe for cats too.

    • Shadow

      I bathe my dogs with Johnsons Baby Shampoo to kill fleas.

    • Cathy

      To rid your room of fleas put a squirt of dawn in a jar lid ( like one from a mayo jar ) add a bi5 of water and put below a night light. You will see fleas in the lid next morning.

      • Raja

        Cathy what is a “bi5” of water?

  • Stacia

    I just found this on Pinterest. After seeing all of the positive comments, I decided to try it on a few spots on my light tan carpet. My husband has a habit of walking in with dirty shoes so it’s seen better days. I didn’t have Dawn so I used Palmolive and it worked wonders! I’m curious about how it would work in my carpet cleaning machine… has anyone tried to use that instead of the expensive solution?

  • kiki

    I’ve used straight hydrogen peroxide on my kitchen counter grout with great results…that stuff foamed up immediately. Do let it sit for just a minute, then proceed to clean. If you’ve got a spare toothbrush you can work with, use it. Results were great.

  • Peggy

    I have a huge coffee stain on my off white sofa cushion. Compliments of a guest who flipped it over without telling me. I found it months later and have only been able to lighten it up. I will give this a try.

  • Guest

    Is this mixture cleaner only for stain removals…Does anyone know if how it works with color crayons or markers on walls? I have 2 little ones who LOVE to write on the walls and I too have bought so many cleansers and nothing has really worked to remove the marks from my walls. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated…Thank you!

    • Samantha

      Haven’t tried it yet as a household cleaner but think that it would probably work. If it doesn’t, I’ve used magic erasers on crayon marks with GREAT results.

    • Jennifer

      For Crayon on wall try WD-40, it works wonders too.

      • Monika

        Wd40 also is great for getting stain off your hands. After a long day staining and having the stain eat thru several gloves, my fingers were almost black. Didn’t have any mineral spirits left, saw the can of wd40, what the heck, I tried it, the stain loosened up, so… I took a pair if latex gloves, saturated my hands, wore the gloves for about a 1/2 hour, then wiped them, they came clean with just a bit of scrubbing. My hands were stained under my fingernails, it all came clean and smelled a lot better than mineral spirits. Wash with soap and water, was ready to cook dinner!

    • Joelle

      I have used toothpaste for crayon on walls. Worked great! Has to be the white paste, not gel toothpaste.

    • Jill

      Magic erasers! They really work best on walls. I’ve gotten crayon, marker, pencil, and little hand smudges off really easily with Magic Erasers. I live in China and made sure to bring a years supply of them with us. :)

    • Sandy

      Sunscreen (spray can) and mosquito repellent gets sharpie off walls….at least it worked for me!

    • Suzanne

      For crayons, just heat the marks up with a blow dryer and wipe them off. But for markers, I have no idea!

    • Charliann

      Have you ever tried the Mr. Clean Magic Erasers? They take marks off of my painted walls and wallpaper when nothing else does. You should give it a try.

    • Amanda

      for color crayons, I use Lysol Kitchen Cleaner and a scrub brush with bristles. It works every time, but be careful. It CAN take some texture off your wall and I am sure it can do some kind of damage to the paint job. It didn’t do anything to the paint on my walls, but a tiny bit to the texture. Marker….I am not sure. :0) Good luck.

    • guest

      my son drew a ‘masterpiece’ on our white living room walls using a black permanent marker. I tried several cleaners to no avail. then I remembered having read somewhere that hairspray would work. it removed everybit of the mark! I also tried it on a several year old spot in my young daughters room with limited success. I think my initial success may have been due to the marks being relatively fresh. still, it’s worth a shot!

      • chelseyadele

        My son wrote all over my walls with black perm. marker, Rubbing alcohol took it all away!~

    • Kate

      Magic Eraser is the only thing I’ve found that really works and if you have any texture to your walls it can take forever which is why I bought washable crayons and markers and threw the other ones away.

    • sara

      i know it sounds weird but rub your wall with an expo marker and immediately clean up with a wet towel until stains disappear! its supposed to work wonders!

  • Tia

    just tried it on a pair of canvas sneakers and it worked great! really cleaned up the sole.

  • alma87

    Hi all i put this is a spray bottle and sprayed my carpet, but not sure what to do next. Do i have to scrub it in? it is coke that spilled on my white carpet years ago, and i have tried everything to get rid of it so i why not try one more thing!
    thanks

    • alma87

      Also wanted to know do i let it dry on its own, do i have to blot it..right now it is a big blue spot on my carpet!

      • Jessica
        AUTHOR

        I would scrub it after letting it sit for a bit. Here is what Samantha said in her original post: “Because this seemed like it would be a harder job, I left it alone for a bit longer (albeit, just a little bit longer…). After waiting for what seemed like an eternity (but was probably less than 10 minutes), I took a rag and started rubbing little circles on the soiled areas. I have no clue if this is “proper” or not, but when I was finished I didn’t try to rinse it off in any way. I just wiped off the excess foam from my light scrubbing, then sat back and admired the fruits of my labor.”

  • Michelle

    Is this only peroxide and dawn or do you add it to water?

    • Jessica
      AUTHOR

      Just peroxide & dawn. :)

      • jan pacheco

        how much of each ,dawn and peroxide.

        • sara

          2 parts peroxide 1 part dawn

  • Rhonda Perren

    Wow! I am amazed! I tried this on a chocolate brown microfiber loveseat that the puppy threw up on. It worked fast, and like nothing else I have ever used! The best part it doesn’t leave a ring! I have been walking around the house LOOKING for spots to try it on. Have found several and they are now waiting to be wiped off. Pinterest rocks! (I also tried the homemade foaming dish soap yesterday using Dawn, and it is fantastic also!)
    Thank you so much for this post!

    • Victoria

      foaming dish soap? what are some more good homemade cleaners? i love this miracle cleaner im tackling my couch this weekend :D

  • Chrissy

    I just used it on my 17 month old granddaughters chair, that she stands in, climbs all over, spills drinks all over etc. and it worked like a charm!

  • Maya

    I tried this on a chocolate milk stain on white pants today and it worked. I let it soak for about half hour then used an old toothbrush to scrub the stain out. I rinsed the pants with hot water before putting them in the wash. My daughter’s pants look new again.

  • Michelle

    Just tried this out on some counter top stains.

    Does *not* work on rust stains.

    However, it *did* work on some misc. red stain I had on my counter. Still in search of the elusive easy/natural rust stain remover….

    • Jessica
      AUTHOR

      I will see what I can find for you and let you know :)

    • Kayla

      I would try a magic eraser on the rust stain.
      I am not sure I am using this solution correctly, however. I have an old area rug that has a red gatorade stain and a newer orange soda stain. I don’t know if I let it sit long enough but my spots didn’t come out. And am I supposed to shake the mixture together till it’s bubbly or just stir it?

      • Modern Day Moms
        AUTHOR

        Hi Kayla, how long are you letting it sit? I would try shaking it and then spraying it. It might help to let it sit for as long as it can and then spray some more..

    • Elaine

      Regarding the rust stain, try this: pour some lemon juice on top of the stain, then pour table salt on top of that. Pour enough salt so it starts to absorb the lemon juice a bit. Let that sit for a while – several hours is fine, even overnight – then wipe it up. Your rust should be gone. This has saved me several times when I’ve had rust stains from kitchen gadgets in my white Corian sink! Hope that helps.

    • Gayle

      Rust stains almost always come out with Barkeepers Friend. I have had great success with that, even with delicate clothing. Just make a paste and let it sit awhile, then launder.

    • Micki

      Try cider vinegar on the rust stain…. it worked great for me on a ring left on my shower floor by a can of shave cream.

      • Sweetpea1960

        You can also paint the bottom of any can paint the bottom with clear nails list and it won’t leave the rust stains

  • Janine

    Do you think this would work on grease stains?

  • gappy

    I used the peroxide and carpet shampoo in my Kirby carpet attchment on the puppy stains, WORKS !

  • Cami

    Does it have to be the ultra concentrated dawn shown in the picture, or just the regular blue stuff?

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      I think the regular will work fine. Although, our results are concluded by using the kind shown in the photo. I don’t see why regular wouldn’t work however.

  • Kim

    I live overseas and can’t get Dawn. I’m wondering if another liquid dish detergent would work. I’m going to try, at least!

  • Rose

    Do you have to use this mixture all at once or is it still effective if it “sits” in a spray bottle and is used as needed. Just wondering if the peroxide or Dawn breaks down if it isn’t used right away?

    • Samantha

      Rose,

      I’ve let mine sit for about a day and used it later with great results. I don’t normally make an enormous batch, however, so can’t be certain how it would work if it sat for longer. I would imagine it would work fine, but you never can tell… if you try it, I would suggest making a small amount and letting it sit to try later – that way if it doesn’t work, it’s not a great big bottle full that’s wasted… :)

      • Donna Carlino

        Hydrogen peroxide looses its effectiveness after a short time if subjected to light. (Don’t know why) So that is why it is in those ugly brown bottles. So you would need to put in a dark bottle.

  • Crystal

    Just wondering if this will work on set in clothing stains. You know…those stains that you forgot to pre-treat, and then washed AND THEN DRIED…Not that I would know anything about that….

    • Samantha

      Shame on you, Crystal! I never forget to pretreat my stains…never! Welll, almost never! Okay, maybe I never REMEMBER to pretreat them…whatever… :)

      The cloth wipe I used it on in the post had actually been washed and dried quite a few times before I attempted this cleaner and it worked wonderfully!

      See? I don’t know anything about that either…. ;)

      • Crystal

        I’m rushing out today to pick up gallons of the ingredients, lol. I have three boys, a messy daughter and a husband that loves to roll in the dirt. And our neighbors all have farms, which means my kids are always bringing home stained clothes. Thanks for sharing, I’m looking forward to trying it.

  • Amanda

    I just used this with the bleach alternative dawn. It gets blood out of clothes too!

  • rae

    I love the idea but does it work for car upolstery???? My son has my car a mess???

    Thanks for the idea

    • Sandra

      I used it in my husbands truck, which had grossly dirty, cloth upholstery, sprayed it and left it on,,, the next day I could not see any oily greasy dirt anyplace,, it was amazing

  • Krysti

    I haven’t had much success with using this on clothes stains, but I use this to clean basically everything else. It done an awesome job on cleaning my siding (it was really nasty too!) and my tub sparkles after using this. Love it!

  • Ami

    How big is a part? How much solution would I need to clean a spot that’s approximately 4″x4″?

    • Michelle

      For that size, I would think that using a standard Tbsp as your “parts” would work. So, 1Tbsp dawn, 2Tbsp peroxide. :)

  • Mary G.

    I tried the Dawn and hyrogen peroxide on a white shirt of my husband’s this morning and IT WORKED. No more Shout for me. No chemicals, much cheaper-had what I needed and I was amazed. Most of the stains have been there for a few washings and dryings. I will not be buying laundry sprays anymore.

  • Nancy Cook Robinette

    How would you clean carpets with it?

  • Sara

    Has anyone used the new Dawn “Power Clean”!?

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      I haven’t. I have used the original Dawn and it worked great. I’ve heard that it is because of the petroleum in the mix.. not sure.

  • Heather S

    What does 1 “Part” mean??? Is there measurements??

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      The part is a variable…it can be any amount you want it to be, ounces, cups, gallons There are no measurements, you just make sure you do 2 parts HP to 1 part dawn. So if you use 1 cup of dawn, you would do 2 cups of HP. etc. If you do 1 gallon dawn, you would do 2 gallons of HP.

  • Denise

    Does anyone know of anything that will take grease off of cupboards.I have tried everything and it just seems to gum up. Do you think Dawn and peroxide would work? My cupboards are Oak. But I will def. try this on my puppys accidents.

    • Monika

      I had an old antique cupboard, very musty smell, this process did effect the finish, not so bad though.

      • Nancy

        Try baking soda in a dish inside the cupboard for the musty smell.

    • sporty

      try using spray startch i lived in a home that had years of greasy build up on the cabinets and tried this it worked beautifully and did not damage the finish on the cabinets. just spray on let sit for a bit then wash off with warm soapy water. you will love the results. i do recommend testing a small spot first to be sure the finish wont be damaged.

      • Christen

        You can also try the original men’s Barbisol shaving cream. That stuff works for a lot of problem cleaning areas! Spray on, rub with a circular motion, let sit for a minute and wipe off with a damp cloth.

    • Raja

      To fight grease,you use grease. Add some baking soda to some leftover grease or oil. You can use equal amounts or not. It doesnt have to be exact. I make some and leave it in a small jar on the counter. It really works.

  • Gina

    @Denise, I used Scott’s Liquid Gold to clean my mother’s cabinets that had years of dirt, smoke, oil etc. It did take some elbow grease, but that seemed to work.

  • Cay

    Just found this on Pinterest and am very interested in trying it. But I have two questions: 1) Doesn’t the hydrogen peroxide “bleach” out the color on colored clothes? and 2) Does it work on grease spots?
    Thanks!!

  • Amanda

    Just found this on pinterest and am eager to try it on some things! I just wanted to say/ask though.. have you tried drying your cloth diaper stuff in the sun? I’ve found that worked really well for getting stains out of them. :)

  • Tena

    Tried this tonight on a few-months-old blood spot on one of our bedroom accent pillows (I have 5 kids, don’t ask). It will.not.budge. I did find, however, that the pillow was very dingy. The spot AROUND the blood spot is SPARKLING!! :)

    • Sandra

      My experience is that blood should always be cleaned with COLD water for best results. When I get blood on sheets, etc., I always soak in cold water ASAP, then just wash like normal and it comes out. If you use hot water, you can set the stain in. I have never been able to get blood stains out of something once it has gone thru the dryer, though. I have also used Oxy Clean (mixed at home, powder & warm water) with great results on blood, if I’m concerned that the cold water alone won’t do the trick. I’ll have to give this mixture a try on items that have gone thru the dryer & have set-in stains.

      • Laurie L.

        For blood stains, just pour straight hydrogen peroxide on them. It will “melt” the blood stain, then wash as usual.

  • Jennifer

    Wow, I have beige carpets and this took the stains right out of them. I’m so excited I don’t have to go rent a machine just for a few spots! =) I was worried about the peroxide bleaching out the carpet, but no worries, so far so good.

  • Patricia

    thanks to pinterest, i came across this! i didn’t have any Dawn on hand, so i thought i’d try the lemon Joy Ultra that i did have. and it still works! i may just go and get some Dawn anyway (not sure what it is about it that would have it be specific), but at least this stuff worked for now! good to know that other dishwashing soap works too! thank you for the great cleaning tip!!

  • Cat

    Ok, my husband is an auto mechanic and is constantly getting grease everywhere. I just tried this on my walls. The grease didn’t even struggle in coming off. I just sprayed and wiped. It was great to see a white wall again.

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      YES! Great to hear :)

  • candice

    I need to soak my husbands chef coats to get them nice and white again, how much of each should i use and how much water? Do i use hot water? Do i rinse them by hand before putting them in the machine or can i rinse them in the machine? I’d be grateful for your help!

  • Kelly

    I just tried this on some cat stains on my carpet. The stains came right out, but how do I get the suds out of my carpet?

    • Caroline

      Use white vinegar & water (about 50-50%) — the vinegar cuts the soap & removes residue.
      for carpet, you can use MUCH LESS Dawn & it is still effective. I use 10% dawn & 90% peroxide.

  • NikkiHippe

    LOVE THIS! I totally should have taken before and after pictures, But I didnt(boooooo) Anyway we were storing some of the larger baby items at an in laws house who lives on a farm surrounded by gravel roads well it was in their basement and 3 years later when we decided to add to our family I went and got out our stroller, ICKY! it was nasty covered in dirty stained to Hell and just plain old gross I tried everything to get this clean then I remembered I had tagged this on Pintrest and i figured i would give it a shot! it worked YAY, Thank you so much

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      SO glad to hear!!

  • Sammie

    I have a favorite shirt that was stained so I pre-treated it with Oxiclean and it left a bigger yellow stain! I’m going to try this today to see if it will get it out, it’s worth a shot anyways!

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      Let us know how it works!

      • Sammie

        It didn’t work. :( It was worth a shot though. It looks like it faded a little, I left it overnight. On the plus side I will use this from now on instead of Oxiclean! (Oxiclean did take out the original stain, but what it left behind was worse!)

        • melanie

          The yellow comes from chlorine and iron molecules most likely. Try a rust remover on it if you still have it (which I doubt). There is a product called Iron Out at the grocery store. Its few dollars. Stain Devil is a couple of dollars also. Try a rust remover on yellow stains (except mustard–that is a dye and not a mineral like iron). My question about this miracle product combination is would it be most effective mixing it before using or can it be stored in a dark bottle. Could we turn our light protecting brown bottle into the spary bottle itself? Cocoa is VERY difficult ot get out and I saw someone say it could get chocolate milk out. So, I would make my brown bottle all cute because my laundry room is all cute.

  • Tammie

    Yay

  • Gail

    I just tried this on my large pile of stained clothes that I’ve been holding for a “miracle treatment.” They were colors and whites. I sprayed on each stain, generously. I let it sit for a few minutes and threw it in the washing machine to agitate and wash and rinse. It worked on maybe one stain of the entire bunch (there was at least 10 – 15 items of clothing). It did help on my dining room grout, but had absolutely no affect on my kitchen grout. But for those wondering, it didn’t discolor my colored clothes at all. I always seem to have the luck that whatever works for everyone else, still doesn’t work for me :)

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      Gail,
      I did this same thing and found that with certain stains I had to let it sit longer. You could try again before washing, maybe letting them soak in the mixture before washing.

  • Amy

    This was awesome for grout! Thanks!

  • Jenn

    When My boyfriend and I moved into our new house, we had 3 weeks of peace before one of our dogs discovered a skunk in the yard. Needless to say he was sprayed point blank in the chest by this striped critter. I do not know if anyone else knew but a skunks spray is yellow and REALLY potent when its point blank. We doused the dog in tomato juice, sauce, paste, (he was not fased by his experiace or stench and proceeded to lick the tomato products off himself) it was 11 at night and we were frustrated and smelly, so I finally called for some help, and a friend of mine suggested this mixture but with the added ingredent of baking soda. I was amazed at how well it worked. We applied it to him, allowed it to sit for about 2 minuets washed and repeated. he smelled so good after, couldn’t even tell he had meant a skunk. We re applied about 3 months down the road after he went for a swim and a hit of skunk came back, but that was all.

  • Monika

    Skunk odor neutralizer
    Or men’s bathrooms!

    1 qt peroxide
    2tbs liquid detergent
    1/4 cup baking soda

    Best way to wash a dog thts been sprayed by a skunk….. Put it in the bed of a pickup truck, tail gate up, mine does not like the height, so she wont jump out. have your slurries ready, (I always have a few qts of peroxide onhand just in case) wash the dog head to tail, with soap and water first, then use the slurry head to tail, rub it in, let it set a minute or two or as long as the dog will let you, Rinse. Fresh and clean every time. There might be residual baking soda powder left behind, it’ll be fine.

    We had a bar business,you can only guess what the men’s room smelt like, no matter how well we cleaned, it never smelled fresh, until we used this remedy.

  • Monika

    Forgot: the reason it works so well, the peroxide kills the bacteria that causes the scent. Works on cat pee too..

    • Deb A

      Good to know! I have three cats (2 males) and one of them likes to piddle where he shouldn’t. I’m trying this right now on one of his usual spots and then will douse with vinegar (supposed to kill the urine scent) and see what happens.

  • Christy Barnson

    Thank you for the before and after pictures! I’m excited to try this around the house. I wanted to share that I have had to deal with the skunked dog situation a couple times and the recipe we found that really does the trick is this:

    1 quart hydrogen peroxide
    1 cup baking soda
    1 tsp. dishsoap (preferably blue dawn)
    1 gallon hot water

    I often add a bit more water because my dog is huge. We use this combo for every bath for her and it gets her squeaky clean and beautiful. Last time she got skunked I think it took three baths of this to get rid of the smell, but she had actually attacked the skunk, so it was not just from having been sprayed. Anyway, it works super good!

    Another home cleaning solution I have discovered is vinegar and salt. Now I hate the smell of vinegar but you were talking about not liking to wait or scrub for very long. This is the trick and it will be particularly good on hard water, so this combo will work great in the bathroom! To try it out put a cup of white vinegar and a tablespoon of salt in your squirt bottle and shake it ’til the salt dissolves. Happy Cleaning!

  • couponaddicted

    I have a stains on my carpet that I have not been able to remove. I have even had a carpet cleaning company to clean my carpets and the stains still did not come out.

    Can I put this solution in my carpet steam machine or would you suggest that I only put it in a spray bottle.

  • Katy

    It works AMAZINGLY on getting SILLY PUTTY out of my carpet….I have tried EVERYTHING. I just let it sit for 15minutes and WOOHOO!

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      Woohoo! So happy to hear!

  • ayzia

    just tried on a shirt that I have been trying to get the stain out for a year now. “WOW” it really is a miracle cleaner. would not have believed it if I did not see it with my own two eyes. thank you so much for sharing it with us.

  • Judi

    I have used Dawn detergent for years on washable stains. Just squirt some on the spot,rub it in if you want, and launder. The spot comes out EVERY time. Will have to try this on my stubborn carpet stains.

  • Marquisha

    My goodness this stuff works! I am so mad I didn’t take a before picture! But I still have plenty of carpet to clean! I started with the worst area, the path from my front door to my kitchen. I’m so bad about making people take their shoes off. My husband is the worst culprit. Anyhow, I used the recipe as directed and put it in my carpet cleaner, I think it’s a Bissel. Then, I filled it with hot water to the fill line. The next time, I filled it with water first and added the miracle stuff last, cause it bubbled all over the place. It worked so great, I couldn’t believe my eyes. I ran out of peroxide on the 2nd fill. I used vinegar in it’s place. STILL WORKED!

    • Greta

      How much of each did you put in your Bissell before adding hot water? Did it leave a residue from all the soap?
      I have an Electrolux shampoo machine but it does not suck the water out, so guess it wouldn’t be the best to use. (:

  • doglover

    best evs

  • Jessica

    So I have tons of old pee stains that I coul never get out with just carpet cleaner…or ended up pink from being bleach due to various cleaning products.

    I was skeptical that this wuld work on my carpet and I tried it with the peroxide and dawn soap…nothing happened. I tried it twice and it became a huge foamy mess. So I examined it some more and the dawn never penetrated the carpet. So I tackled it again…
    This time I used my bissell pet stain carpet shampooer’s soap and hydrogen peroxide…same ratio. The stains were gone within 5-10 mins of it soaking into the carpet. Then I shampooed my carpet like normal with some added vinegar to the mo to prevent future pee stains. It’s like brand new carpet!!!

  • Laylanie

    I just tried this on my horribly stained carpet, and OMG it works! i thought i was going to have to live with these stains forever! THANK YOU!

  • Court

    Just wanted to let you know, I took a shot on a salvaged leather couch from a neighbor with this solution- it was filthy but in excellent condition, and free, so I thought “what the heck, can’t cost me any money” and holy cow, did it do wonders. It’s like the couch is new. It’s gorgeous, and when you search for either solution being safe on leather you find that both are, so long as you condition it well.

  • Linda

    This really does work. I had a sticky stain on my light beige carpet and it took it completely out! Thanks

  • Diane

    I tried it on some baseball pants that were handed down to my son. It didn’t work so great on the ground in dirt. I’m soaking them in bleach now and I’ll try it later on whatever is left. Or maybe I didn’t leave it on long enough? I’m a little impatient too! :) Any ideas on how to get ground in dirt out of white nylon-type baseball pants are welcomed!

  • Renee

    Lestoil…..it is great! I moved into a new house and the kitchen cabinets and handles were “gummed” up pretty good. Lestoil applied with a cotton ball on the really bad spots and diluted with water on the rest.

  • Loving DIY

    @Denise….Lestoil…..it is great! I moved into a new house and the kitchen cabinets and handles were “gummed” up pretty good. Lestoil applied with a cotton ball on the really bad spots and diluted with water on the rest.

  • kathy

    for the carpet, do you scrub it in or just let it sit and absorb with a clean cloth. im afraid if i scub it will just be a soapy mess. i dont have a rug shampooer to use.

  • Trilby

    OMG!!! WOW is all I can say!! I have micro fiber diningroom chairs. Purchased BEFORE grandkids, the stains left from little ones are terrible, to the point I hated anyone to see those chairs! I tried this just about 20 minutes ago and you could swear I bought new chairs!!! I love it! Thank you soooooooo much!

  • michelle wetterling

    does it work on OLD grease stains? I have dozens of shirts that I keep around because I don’t want to spend the money to buy new in hopes someone will come up with an old grease stain remover. I’m so upset. half my clothes are ruined and I don’tk now what to do, will this work??

  • Felicia

    This is awesome. I will probably blog about this myself…. I have an old yellow fridge downstairs that is just begging for me to try this!

    And more than a few white shirts for the kids… Very exciting!

    Wish I’d know about this before… The carpet in my old apartment could have used it!

  • Kelly

    I was wondering have you tried it on any ink stains?

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      Yes and it works great! I even tried it on our wall, the couch, the rug AND the arm chair. :)

    • Cindi Moore

      I know this is an old reply – but maybe someone else is reading – Just got some ink stains of my chair! PURE awesomeness.

  • Cindi Moore

    Ok – juice and mystery stains off the chair – two days later, 2 year decorates with a pen. Ink stains – GONE. GONE. GONE.
    12 year old eats hot dog at football game. Ketchup stains on $40 shirt (no, I didn’t pay that for it, but still…). GONE. GONE. GONE.
    This stuff is awesome. Awesome. Awesome.
    YES, you can make a full bottle and let it sit. May turn clear, it’s ok. Yes, it’s a little sudsy, it’s ok. It’s completely awesome and practically free. Pour directly on or use a spray bottle. Super easy. No work AT ALL. THANK YOU!
    Next job: the mystery carpet stain.

  • Patty

    This does work on carpet. I have been spot cleaning all day. I even had to put markers next to where I sprayed, because I found when I went back to it after letting it sit for a bit I couldn’t find where I sprayed, the stains were GONE!

  • Jessica A

    Not sure if this was in the comments anywhere…but does this work on nail polish stains on carpet? I spilled PINK nail polish (of all colors) on my beige carpet! I was able to get most of it out with rubbing alcohol and then nail polish remover…but there’s still a little pink tinge that I need to get out.

    Any suggestions?

  • Jennifer

    Dawn is probably my most favorite cleaning product!! I never thought about mixing it with peroxide so this just makes me happy! I have used blue Dawn & Fels-Naptha soap to get breast-fed baby poop out of whites ( solid white blanket, cloth diapers, etc) and it works miracles. I just soak the stained clothes in cold water with Dawn for at least 30min and then rub down the stain with Fels-Naptha just before putting it in the wash. It thrills my heart to pull it out of the wash and see that the stain has disappeared!

  • Monica

    Has anyone tried this on a mattress? I have a disgusting cat pee stain on my guest room mattress! I’m going to try it and see how it goes.

    • jennifer

      http://www.remove-cat-urine.com/cat-urine-article-directory.html

      Try this for the Cat urine. It works wonders! Almost the same as this..but add baking soda.

      • Monica

        Okay first I tried the dawn mix on the cat pee stain on my mattress. It lightened the stain a lot but it was still there and it left a large blue area. Then today I tried the Cat pee recipe that Jennifer recommended. At first I wasn’t impressed but I just went back in there to check it. Its been about an hour, its way way way lighter than it was. I can still kind of see it but hopefully overnight it will be gone! Amazing! Oh and I tried the dawn and peroxide mix on a green shirt I had gotten Indian food on, while cooking (it was a huge buttery curry stain) and its completely gone now. I had already washed and dryed the shirt too! So excited I found this!

  • cynthia

    do you think this mircle cleaner will gwt the haze off car headlights?

  • Erin

    I know I’m late to the party on this post but I just wanted to thank you so muh for this! We bought abused minivan for (super) cheap from an individual and we knew it was dirty, but we totally underestimated the filth. I swear they had never no much as wiped anything down. They spilled some kind of drink (or something of that sort) and the whole floor of the van had dark brown stains. We tried cleaning it with oxiclean first, and that helped, but THIS stuff worked wonders! We used it to clean the seats and the carpets and they look soooo much better! Thanks again!!

    • Julie

      Were they leather seats in the van?

  • Heather

    Does anyone know if it stays good yet? Would like to mix some up in a spray bottle and use as needed…. Thanks

  • lori

    Works GREAT. removed stains from carpet that have been there for years!

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      Love to hear that!

  • Marie

    Just tried this an hour ago on a stain on our apartment carpet. It’s been there for an easy 4 months, at least. Easily removed! So wonderful and so happy I found it! I’ve tried so many other things and wasn’t hopeful at first, but I’m so glad I was proven wrong! Thank you!

  • Lauren

    My husband tried being helpful and getting some black shoe polish off the carpet after it fell off the side table. Unfortunately his scrubbing just left us with a big black spot. So glad I had found this previously and tried it out the next morning and we no longer have a black spot in our tan carpet! Great stuff!

  • Barbara

    This stuff is AMAZING! My husband is cleaning?????

  • Cindy

    Well I used this concoction today and two very old large rug stains are completely gone! The color on my carpet was not lifted at all.
    This is a miracle cleaner. Don’t hesitate to try it even on old stains.

  • Age

    WOW… We had a stain (liquid soap) on our microfiber couch that has been there for years. Nothing took that stain out. I tried this method, and so far, it seems to have worked! When I kept rubbing to remove the solution, it was very soapy…then I realized…that was probably because the STAIN WAS SOAP. I wonder if it will bleach out when the sun hits it (peroxide). As of now, I’m really happy with the immediate results…

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      So great to hear! Thank you for sharing.

  • Brenda

    I was wondering if you could use this in a carpet cleaning machine?

  • Brenda

    Can I use this in my carpet cleaning machine?

  • Ashley

    im gettin married in a week and i have some stains on my wedding dress wouldi be able to use this to remove the stains?

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      I am so afraid to recommend this just because I don’t want something to happen. I hope you got it fixed though!

  • Theresa

    Samantha–You are ~*~Awesome~*~

    Thank you so much for great ideas, and even more for the sacrifice of your family. <3

  • Bailey

    Hi I was wondering if you can use this on clothes that require dry cleaning?

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      Hi Bailey,
      I would be careful. Depending on the fabric. You might want to test it on an inconspicuous spot first to make sure.

      • Bailey

        Well the material is wool, and it’s a pretty old stain, about a year, I just haven’t taken it to that dry cleaners cause I’m not sure they could get it out, but maybe I should take it to them first. Then if they can’t get it out I might as well try this miracle stain remover!

        • Modern Day Moms
          AUTHOR

          I saw this comment on another site. It is in regards to wool rugs but might be helpful. Since the recipe is dish washing liquid and hydrogen peroxide, it seems like it should be OK but just use it sparingly.

          Wool carpet is sensitive to some chemicals, especially alkalis. Never, ever use chlorine bleach on wool rugs; however, hydrogen peroxide can be used if applied sparingly and carefully. When cleaning spots and stains on wool carpet, use a neutral detergent like dishwashing liquid rather than laundry detergent or household cleansers.

  • Megan

    What about shelf life? I’m just wondering if this is something that can be made and just kept on hand for when I need it or if I should just make it when I need it. Also, about how much does this recipe make?

  • Niki

    Does anyone know if this works on those annoying oil stains that get all over clothes when Chapstick goes through the washer and dryer? Not that I’ve ever had that happen… ;-)

  • Cindy

    Think this will work on clay stains on my daughter’s softball uniforms? Going to try this out for sure! Thanks a bunch!

  • Tracy

    OH MY GOSH! I tried this with the pink dawn. The one that says olay, scented with pomegranate. This is the only one I had on hand because I love it for washing dishes. I decided my first attack with this concoction would be our bathroom. We have hard water and I absolutely hate what it does to the tile in the bathroom!

    The name “miracle cleaner” says it all. I think I have a new bathroom now thanks to this cleaner. I am off to attack the WHOLE house. Thank you so much for sharing!!!!!!!!!!

    Tracy/Aiya

  • Tara Lombard

    I am SO trying this! Thanks for sharing!!

  • Missy T

    So my 19 month old sprayed this in his eye before I had a chance to grab it. He seems ok but his eye’s a bit puffy and red. Anyone else have an accident like this? Just wondering if his dye is gonna melt away. :-P

  • Christy

    I just tried this on my tan carpet and it appears to have worked! I had about 7 or so small dark spots that seemed to come from nowhere(I had to have spilled, but didn’t know it). These stains have been there at least 2 years and they look like they are gone!

  • Dee

    I used this mixture for first time today on lipstick and eyebrow pencil stains on the crème-colored carpet by my make-up table. Worked great, but I’m a little concerned about the excess soap that’s left in the fibers of the carpet. I’m afraid that it will attract dirt. What’s the best way to make sure that all of the residual is gone?

    Once I got those two major spots cleaned, I took a dampened white cloth and spritzed the cleaning solution onto it and then buffed at some of the small dark spots left by who knows what and it was enough to remove them without having to saturate the area. Of course, they weren’t deep stains like the others. These were more like “surface” stains that were just within the top part of the fibers. I’m thinking now about putting one of my white terry cloth cleaning rags that’s slightly dampened onto the head of my old Swiffer and then spritzing some of the mixture onto it, and using it on the traffic areas.

  • Alyssa

    After reading all of these comments I was super excited to try it on my fruit punch stains on my tan carpet. I left it soaking for an hour then I scrubbed and it didn’t work at all. Maybe it’s because I didn’t mix them together beforehand? I measured out the peroxide, poured it on, then measured out the soap and put that on…I didn’t think that would be too much of a difference. =[

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      Alyssa,
      I would mix them, let them sit for a second and spray on. If your stain is old, I would repeat the steps. Spray on and let sit. What soap are you using? The original blue dawN?

      • Alyssa

        Yeah I’m using the original blue Dawn. I guess it is kinda old, I’ll try again tomorrow.

  • Lisa E

    Hello. I have seen two questions asked about grease without a response. I’d like to know as well as if it would take out oil, as in EVOO from a shirt! Oh yes, foundation as well! These are two types of stains I haven’t had success with previously.

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      I think it should work but I’m not sure to be honest! I know that dawn dish soap is great for getting out oil and grease so I would definitely give it a try.

    • tonya

      coca cola will also bring out grease and oil stains

  • Annette

    Mixed some up and cleaned the edge of my kitchen sink and counter. Amazing stuff! I hope it stores ok. Putting it in the back of a seldom used cabinet for darkness. Thanks for the info!

  • Janie

    This is amazing. I have always cleaned my grout with bicarbonate of soda and vinegar, which works really well, but this “miracle cleaner” is so much quicker. I am so pleased I have found this site, I will use this method from now on. Thank you so much for sharing this.

  • TJ

    I was wondering has anyone tired this on darker fabrics? Seems most are using it on light colored stuff and i was just wandering if anyone had tried it on a darker fabric, and had success without anything being bleached or lightened from the hydrogen peroxide.

    • Denesa Veatch

      I just used this cleaner on a pair of bright red, athletic pants. There was a chocolate or blood stain, not sure which…and it took the stain out without discoloring the red!! Keep in mind these were a pair of very inexpensive pants bought at a thrift store, so it wouldnt have been a big loss if it didnt work, and a great item to try it out on for discoloring.

  • Taylor @ Mama Java

    Well, I must be the only person this didn’t work for. My baby girl’s sleeper had a formula stain on it, and nothing has worked to get it out, which is a shame because it’s in excellent condition otherwise. I tried using the peroxide & Dawn, and instead of removing the stain it yellowed horribly. :(

    Any suggestions as to why this happened and/or what I can do to fix the yellowing?

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      Hi Taylor, Bummer! What color is the sleeper? If it’s white, you could try using lemon juice and baking soda paste or you can try redoing the peroxide mixture and letting it sit longer. That could help! Let me know details and I will see what I can do.

  • Ellie

    I just tried this on the grout around my bathroom floor because it was looking terrible, and I am in a spring cleaning mode, it worked amazing. I didn’t realize the grout could be that clean!!!

  • angela

    i have a tan/grey coloured couch. we also have a dog that has alot of accidents on the front of our couch!! it now is yellow & smells, was wondering if this would help at least remove the stains???

  • Lynn

    I used it on my white shower curtain. All i can say is WOW!!! It’s actually white again and bleach wouldn’t even get the stains out! I’m very impressed!!! I haven’t used bleach for a long time now and I sure didn’t want to get some just for my shower curtain. I used it on my grout too with awesome results! :D

  • Julie

    Used this on my shower door. I sprayed it on and then lightly rubbed the solution in a circular motion with a microfiber cloth. I spent about four to five minutes total on the whole thing. I rinsed the door with water and –voilà–perfection! Amazing!! It used to take me twenty minutes and the burning of my lungs with chemicals to get it clean before. As a bonus, it also cleaned several “washed & dried in” spots on the microfiber cloth. Two birds, one stone!!

  • Stephens

    Can I use this to clean my white walls in my home. Thank you.

  • Nik

    Just FYI, the dish soap isn’t even really needed. I use 3% HP directly on ANY stain that my normal all purpose cleaner doesn’t get out on the first try. Just pop a spray nozzle directly on the HP bottle, spray the stain and walk away. Then when you remember that you sprayed it (or step on a wet patch of carpet, lol), go back and blot it dry.

    OR if you’re impatient like me (and apparently you too Miss Samantha ;) ), just agitate a little and you’re done.

    I do think the soap might help for pre-treating laundry stains. I’ve tried that with castile soap and it works wonders.

    • never any bleaching experienced, Nik?

      • Nik

        None at all. As a matter of fact, when I first started using the 3% HP for my laundry I tested it full strength on some of my baby’s old brightly colored pajamas. Nothing happened…. well the purposeful “stain” was gone but that’s it. I do still tend to test before spraying directly on anything I’m skeptical of, but I have yet to encounter any problems at all.

        • Tori @ FIToriBLOG.com

          Can you tell me how you do it then? I have had bleaching of color & eating through fabrics! How long do you let it sit? What kind of bottle do you use? Dark? Clear? Thx so much for the extra info Nik!

  • steph

    I have white couches… think it will work??

  • Charbee

    Always always always test it in inconspicuous spot before you use it please!!! I say this because I read about this recipe before and I tried it on something white it worked great. Then I used it on my sons teal shirt and I ended up with bleach like spots. Micro fiber + rubbing alcohol =Awesome!!! Just pour on and scrub with WHITE cloth. Works wonders wish i had known about it before i spent so much money on sofa covers that I no longer use now that i know this trick. ;)

    • any tips for how to keep it from bleaching colors? does sunlight make it start to bleach or anything? just curious!

  • Anyone heard of this eating through natural fibers like cotton/linen? I have a pair of kid’s shorts and i sprayed them and it appears this literally ATE them. It disintegrated the fibers and they literally ripped apart! Anyone heard of this? Thanks in advance. I’m afraid to use it now on other clothing!

  • Erica

    I used a similar recipe on my pillow top mattress that had urine stains (kiddie accidents). The recipe called for peroxide, baking soda, and dawn. My mattress looks brand new and no odor. I have not tried it on my carpet because I am afraid of bleaching it. I will leave out the baking soda and See if that works. :)

  • April`

    Can you use this in a rug doctor machine to scrub your carpet?

  • Donna

    I’ve used this several times already! Works on ALL my 5 year old son’s clothes! I’ve found that if caught (the stain) early, sprayed and allowed to sit for about 5 mins before washing in WARM/HOT water it does EVERY BIT as great as store bought cleaners. Just DO NOT let it sit more than 5-10 mins as it WILL bleach (possibly damage) fabric – I found this out the hard way and forgot to toss what I had sprayed in the wash. :-\ Oh well, live and learn. GREAT. STUFF.

  • Donna

    OH! And I meant to say I tried this on my cream colored rug last night (that my son spilt red juice on) and it worked GREAT! I’ve also had one recipe for months and it’s always worked great… I reuse an old Tide stain cleaner bottle (a solid orange bottle) and maybe that’s why (it was mentioned that a light/clear container could break down the HP)? Good thing I read this, I just made another recipe and almost decided to throw out the orange bottle and reuse another (clear) one… glad I didn’t!

  • Denise

    does anyone know if this works on shoes?

  • Jon

    How long should I let sit on clothes?my daughters softball pants are purple, black, and white. They have dirt stains on the white. Will the stains be gone before I wash them. Isit better to spray on or soak in bucket? Thanks

  • Amanda

    I just wanted to know if I could mix vinegar with the Dawn bleach alternative?

  • Suellen

    It works. I was using this mixture for cleaning my high traffic areas on my carpet, but I had to spray on the concoction, let it sit for awhile, scrub it in then use a carpet cleaning machine to get it to work really well. Looks good. Will use it again in the future.

  • frieda

    Can you use this on a full load of laundry? My husband has load of whites that are just not white anymore. How much would I use of each and how much water?

  • Tenna

    Does anyone know if this works good on Underarm (Sweat Stains), shirts, Bra’s etc.

  • Emily

    My kids’ carseats are now clean again! My 6 and a half year old has a light pink carseat and it looked disgusting, I tried this mixture and within seconds the stains were lifting! I took before and after pics just so I could repost on FB to show ppl that may not know about this! They are in the washer now but I have no doubt they will look even better! Thank you!

  • Teresa Harmon

    Just wondering , I have my own carpet shampooer and I would really like to use this in my shampooer. How would I use this in it instead of shampoo?

  • Janet Kidder

    Any thoughts on how to get out rust stains in clothing. My husband decided to help with laundry, and put a load of clothes in the dryer. But he forgot to start the dryer. It wasn’t discovered for several days and now I have rust spots on most of that load.

    Any help would be apperciated.

  • Callie

    I have used this on several clothing items some without error and then some where it stripped the color to the point of a pair of shorts being ruined, as well as some other items.

    Why would this strip color on some articles of clothing and not others? Assuming for the sake of this post that all items were cotton. I’m wondering if some items were soaked or run under cold water first and those items weren’t effected? Any one else have this?

    Thanks!

  • Gelle Cruz

    How much dawn and peroxide should I add? How many drops of each? Thanks. :)

  • Rachel Chu

    Hi I’m from the Philippines and I was wondering if there are other alternatives for dawn dishwashing liquid because around here we don’t have that kind of product.

  • Tracy

    RE: cleaning carpet stains
    Do you just spray and leave it? Or do you scrub and wipe and rinse? I’ve read many comments, but am still unclear.
    Also, I just tried this on my LO’s DIRTY clothes and there were lots of bubbles in the machine, I’m assuming b/c of the dawn in the spray. Do I need to run extra rinse cycles? Yikes!
    Hoping is going to work great though.
    Thanks!

  • Lisa Sepanik

    I am trying to clean our team flag which at some point someone spilled coffee on. Could have even been last year. It is white with light blue. What is the best way to clean this as I am open to suggestions

  • Becky

    Red clay (dirt) stains???

  • Rosehawk

    I’m usually VERY skeptical of things like this. It just seems too good to be true. Well, I got the ingredients, and did a small scale test on an old shirt of mine that had some AWFUL pit stains. It was a black T-shirt and the pits were white and sparkly from all the nastiness from years of wear. I made up a small amount, sprinkled it over ONE pit, so I could compare afterwards, let it sit, then threw the shirt in the wash with everything else. I pulled said shirt out of the dryer and BOTH armpits looked like a brand new shirt.

    I’m sold on this stuff. I’m pretty rough on my shirts, guess that comes from being a tomboy my whole life, but now I have a way to wear my shirts longer and not be embarrassed by all the gross stains.

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      I LOVE hearing this!!!

  • Duchess

    It WOOOORRRKKKS!!! I love cheap, easy diy projects and I was packing clothes to do laundry when I saw a stain on one of my favorite long-sleeve shirts. That pesky stain has been through two washes and has refused to come out! It was a neon pink stain on a light-grey/black/white speckled top. Anyone would think I’d spilled punch on myself just earlier that day (which may or may not have caused the stain haha). So I searched for what to do since I didn’t have any stain removers in the house.

    I found this website and quickly mixed the green apple dawn soap I had with hydrogen peroxide in a small spray bottle, sprayed a few times, looked at it hopefully, decided not to waste my time and dumped it in the washer. I sprayed a few more things too and dumped them all in the washer. When I pulled the clothes out, LO AND BEHOLD…THE STAIN WAS GONE!! AAAGGGHHHH I’m so happy this worked!! It’s definitely a keeper! You can use any dawn soap I’m assuming. And it takes out almost any stain! Except paint.. I’m hoping to be wrong about that. We’ll see tomorrow.

    Thanks again!!

  • Amy D

    This is the best laundry Cleaner that I have ever used – it took out old stains that I thought were there forever! Thank you!

  • heather

    Definitely works! Awesome! When it comes.to grout though I use just plain white vinigar :)

  • Nancy

    I made this the other day and it didn’t work:( I even tried sparying it on again and washing the clothes again. The stains were still there. Totally bummed.

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      I hate hearing that! Did you let it soak for a while?

  • Nancy

    Just a few minutes. Should I let it sit longer?

  • ila

    For the first time mine lost the blue color when I made it the night before and used it the next morning, why did it do this?

  • Kari

    I’ve seen other cleaning ‘recipes’ that use Dawn. I wonder…. why Dawn? What’s so special about Dawn that any other dish soap couldn’t also do? Anyone know?

    Also, I have read/heard that peroxide loses its potency or some such thing unless it is in those brown containers they come in when you buy it. So I was very happy when I found some that is already IN a brown squirt bottle. I think it was at WalMart, but…I can’t be for sure.

  • Dana Howell

    My dog chewed a teabag on my green glenn-plaid couch cushion. Don’t ask. I was so distraught that I picked up the pieces of tea and the torn parts of the bag and left it. The cushion was ruined anyway, so I thought. I was sick to my stomach. The stain was in different degrees of darkness. Also on this cushion were tiny little blood stains that had been on that cushion for over a year. Don’t ask. Now the tea stain and the old blood stains are completely gone. I didn’t use Dawn. I used the original green Palmolive. I don’t know if you created this “recipe” or not, but, I thank you so much for posting.

  • Karlsdean

    Hi, I live in Sweden so I can’t get Dawn. Do you think it will work with any dishwashing liquid?

  • Landon

    My mom has been telling me about this for a while but I never really took a lot of stock in it, just didnt really seem possible. But I had just gotten back from a long trip with my 4 month old who had explosive diapers on the trip and ruined all her clothes. I paid a lot of money for these items and was upset I would have to throw them away so I decided to try this as a last shot. I only had the orange Dawn not the blue when I made the mix and saturated all the stains and scrubbed the mixture in with a toothbrush (just to make sure) it was over every strand of fabric. After a rinsing everything still had the stains but after they dried they look absolutely brand new. Excited I put the mixture on my carpet where my pet had made messes. After about a minute the stain is GONE!!! the bad part is now I see this super clean spot and see just how dirty the whole rest of the carpet is.

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      So happy to hear. Thanks for sharing!

  • Danielle

    Thank you for trying this. I hate carpets so much. When we finally live carpet free I think I may set them on fire. Right now we’re in an apartment with an almost 3 year old but we’re about to move into a house with ugly, stained carpets in all 3 bedrooms. Our sofa is micro fiber and is stained all over as well. I also hate fabric covered furniture but my husband insists on being comfortable. If it were up to me the entire house would be covered in clear, germ and stain free plastic. Do I need to add that I have OCD? I can’t wait to try this on everything. And I mean everything. You’re a life saver.

  • Bobbie Fulton

    I used the commercial version of stain remover on a knit top and did not wash it immediately. After washing, there was a brownish stain where I had sprayed the spot remover. When I called the manufacturer, I was told the hydrogen peroxide caused the brown stain. So, don’t spray this DIY mixture unless you plan to wash the garment soon.

  • Boogii

    Does dawn direct foam work instead of liquid? I am not familiar with dawn and here in my country all i can find is refilling of direct foam

    • Sherry

      Actually you can use any kind of dishwashing liquid. It doesn’t have to be Dawn.

  • Hannah

    I just tried this on a stain that has been in our carpet for over three years, we kind of covered it with a recliner. I just washed the carpets and that has never defeated the menace, but i tried this stuff, waited about ten minutes, scrubbed and rinsed that one section with the carpet washer, and the stain is mostly gone. It probably isnt all the way gone because i used the generic brand of dawn. We also have a minor ant issue and it kills those suckers pretty dang well! THANK YOU!

  • Nae

    My daughter wasted Sunny Delight on her carpet and moved her bed over it. So it’s been there for months! I should’ve known something was up when she wanted to vacuum her room everyday instead of me. I was shocked when I moved the bed to shampoo the carpet. (which a Rug Doctor did NOTHING) I hope this works on set-in stains. I noticed the HEB HP. I’m from San Antonio. Go SPURS Go! lol

  • CJ

    Yessss! It really works. Last night the newborn baby had that awful, black, meconium poop leak out of her diaper and up the back of her beautiful pale pink onesie. That stuff was like black tar and would not come off. I made a batch of this solution with the green anti-bacterial Dawn & peroxide in a large gallon ziplock bag and put the onesie in to soak for an hour this morning. Just like new – that black stuff is gone without a trace.

  • Debbie

    will this work on car grease/oil , i got some on my work khakis

  • Kristin

    I just used this today to remove grass stains from white pants. It worked like a charm!!! The grass stains are completely gone! AMAZING!!!

  • Nanette

    Is this safe for getting out blue dye from baseball pants. I used Oxyiclean as always but added a shirt that had a blue number on the back and the blue ran onto the pants. Thanks

  • Carolyn Fisher

    I had Blueberry yogurt spilled on my carpet. It was time to have carpet cleaned anyway so
    The stain was pointed out to Stanley Steamer guys. They cleaned the carper but couldn’t
    remove the stain. Today I used the hydrogen peroxide and blue Dawn and the stain is
    Completely gone!! Thank you so much go posting this miracle!!

  • Janell Crosby

    Does this work on red clay stains on baseball pants? If not, any suggestions would be MUCH appreciated! I spend hours scrubbing and soaking every weekend….

  • craig

    Im a professional cleaner and use hydrogen peroxide 10%. Brilliant in showers (for bad mould i sprat bleach soak for 5 mins then spray with peroxide light scrub/wipe and rince. It restores taps, sinks and chrome fittings if used with 0000 steel wool. Great for kitchens. Not bad on grout, but not enough for BAD grout. Its good on glass and nothing beats it for blood on carpet. I uaually mix with a small amount of dishwash for glass with a squeegee. Its also organic and foodsafe. Ive never had an issue with color runs when steam cleaning or spotting. Its also a light degreaser. Doesnt bleach clothing but may make your hands white for 1/2 hour.

  • Dee

    Original pine sol works great for carpet stains also.

  • Hannah

    I had the worst red dirt stains on my favorite pair of olive colored cargo pants. I was worried the peroxide/blue dawn mixture might lighten my pants, so I decided to try just the blue dawn and a little elbow grease instead. It ended up taking a lot of elbow grease, but I was able to get the red dirt stains out. YAY! I’m now hopeful I’ll be able to remove the red dirt stains from my hiking shoes as well. Whenever I get around to doing it, I’ll come back with an update.

  • Gretchen

    I got this same recipe from the One Good Thing by Jillee Website. It’s awesome. I used it on a white turtleneck that had mysterious blue spots on it. I thought I would have to throw it out but all the spots were gone after pretreating with this mixture. I’ve recommended it to lots of people.

  • Sherry

    This stuff even removes hair color from bathroom rugs! Unbelievable! If it doesn’t work at first, just keep dabbing it on.

  • Dee dee

    Please don’t use Dawn on animals and be careful how much it touches human skin, and when you are using it to clean children’s toys, furniture and clothes. It is toxic. My hands break out in a horrible red rash whenever I barely come in contact with it. Better to use Melaleuca soap on skin, esp kids or other non-toxic soap. Otherwise great with rubber gloves on rugs, etc.

  • Kin Yin

    Will this work for ALL stains? I am unsure of what some of the stains are on the clothing I want the stains to be removed from. Many thanks!

  • Mary

    I’m allergic to the blue dawn detergent, so I substituted that with gain bleach alternative it has a really good smell and worked great

  • Cindy

    It works for white things only. Colored clothes could get white stains after such treatment!

  • Leticia

    Hello, I just want to let you know that I tried this and for the first time it works perfectly!! but for the second and third…it did not???

  • Melissa

    I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THIS!! My son plays baseball and his game was in the rain the other night. He wears white pants and add red GA clay to that mixture…. I was so dreading trying to get the mud stains out. I found this on Pinterest… and thought I would try it. I made large mixture and added it to the laundry sink with hot water.. I let them soak for a while..when I came back all the red GA mud stains were GONE!!! This is one excited mom!!

  • Jan Wilson

    Definitely did NOT work on grease spots on clothes.

    • Modern Day Moms
      AUTHOR

      For grease spots, use chalk or baby powder to absorb the grease. There really isn’t anything else that will remove grease or oil spots except something that will absorb it.

    • Jenny

      Jan, I’ve had great success on grease spots by spraying with carburetor cleaner, scrubbing it around with a toothbrush, and then spraying stain remover on the spot. (You might want to spray a couple times with the carb cleaner if it is a tough spot.) Then wash as usual. I learned this trick from my dad who forever had car grease and oil on his work clothes.

  • Ikke

    we don’t have Dawn here…. can this be replaced by something else? Thanks beforehand.

  • Judith Denison

    Has anyone tried it on cream-colored Icelandic wool? Have some light brown stains, might be coffee.

  • Angelique

    Does it have to be dawn?

    • Robin

      I tried Palmolive with no results. Bought a small $1 bottle of Dawn to try and it worked beautifully!

  • Katt

    It has happened to me twice! Movie theater butter leaking through the bag and the combo box, to my jeans. I’m really hoping this will work, it is the last option. Has anyone ever experienced this? Or is it just me? I wore a brand new pair of Levis and a new black shirt, and the butter (oil) leaked all over my clothes. I’m beside myself, for I can’t afford to buy new.

  • Patricia

    Loking forward to trying this out. FYI, equal parts Dawn and vinegar works awesome on soap scum, just spray it on, let it sit rinse off. I use it on the shower/bath and can’t believe how sparkling clean the tub, tile and faucet become!

  • Laura

    Does anyone know if you can use this on technical clothing? Like a waterproof jacket?

  • Robin

    Stains around a floor vent after a dryer fire 14 years ago. Multiple cleaning attempts failed miserably. A carpet cleaning specialty service also attempted and failed confirming my fear I’d set the stain with my own cleaning attempts. Now we’re moving and trying to clean. As a last-ditch effor, I tried your recipe. Amazing results! I wish I could post the before and after pics. I’m in awe! Thank you! Thank you! This saved us having to replace the carpet!!

  • Pete

    Making sure I understand this — no water in the mixture? Just the dishwashing liquid and HP?

  • Melissa

    Hi, I have burgundy colored upholstery. Would this be safe to try on this?

  • leah raynor

    I used this to clean my sons disgusting car seat cover and it worked amazingly. Thank you

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Pingback: Best Stain Remover « « TodaysMama TodaysMama on December 3, 2011

Pingback: DIY Cleaner: Make Your Own Stain Release on December 3, 2011

Pingback: 10 recipes for cleaning green | My Family Blog on December 3, 2011

Pingback: Make it, Clean it | JackedUpNews on December 3, 2011

Pingback: Homemade Household Cleaners | Scrapaholics on December 3, 2011

Pingback: This Homemade stain remover WORKS | It's Still Life on December 3, 2011

Pingback: DIY: Miracle Stain Remover on December 3, 2011

Pingback: BEST Homemade stain remover EVER! on December 3, 2011

Pingback: Stain Remover: Hydrogen Peroxide & Original Dawn | Pin-spired on December 3, 2011

Pingback: It’s A “Clean” Post…. « Jewels and Trucks on December 3, 2011

Pingback: Pin it or Pointless? Dawn & Hydrogen Peroxide vs. Shout | Myself Better on December 3, 2011

Pingback: The dirty truth about cleaning | Momaha Blogs on December 3, 2011

Pingback: Limpiador milagroso hecho en casa - Guía de MANUALIDADES on December 3, 2011

Pingback: Maven Mama on December 3, 2011

Pingback: Drumroll……Awesomeness! Cleaning Edition | Uninspired Revolution on December 3, 2011

Pingback: Homemade Cleaning Products for all of your Spring Cleaning Needs on December 3, 2011

Pingback: 18 Cheap Stain Removers You Can Make at Home | Money Talks News on December 3, 2011

Pingback: 18 Cheap Stain Removers You Can Make at Home on December 3, 2011

Pingback: Easy DIY Stain Removal Mix on December 3, 2011

Pingback: Final Repurposing of Blogs | elizacdiaz on December 3, 2011

Pingback: Reduce, Reuse/Repurpose, Recycle | elizacdiaz on December 3, 2011

Pingback: Roundup of Common Products You Can Make Inexpensively at Home on December 3, 2011

Pingback: In The Kitchen | Smells Like Clean Spirit on December 3, 2011